Music City Miracle

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The Music City Miracle is a famous play that occurred at the end of an NFL Wild Card Playoff game between the Tennessee Titans and Buffalo Bills on January 8, 2000 (following the 1999 regular season) at Adelphia Coliseum in Nashville, Tennessee.

[edit] Game details

Going into the game, Bills coach Wade Phillips created a stir by starting quarterback Rob Johnson, rather than Doug Flutie, who had started 15 games, and who had led the team to the playoffs.

After a scoreless first quarter, the Titans opened up the scoring when Jevon Kearse sacked Buffalo quarterback Rob Johnson in the end zone for a safety. Johnson completed just 10 of 22 passes while being sacked six times including twice by Kearse. After the safety, Derrick Mason returned the free kick 42 yards to the Bills' 28-yard line. Five plays later, Tennessee quarterback Steve McNair scored on a 1-yard touchdown run. After forcing a punt, the Titans drove 56 yards in 11 plays. Kicker Al Del Greco initially missed a 45-yard field goal attempt, but the Bills were penalized for defensive holding on the play, and Del Greco's second attempt was good from 40 yards on the last play of the half. At the end of the half, the Bills were trailing 12-0 and had managed to gain only 64 yards, while also losing 44 yards on nine penalties.

But in the second half, the Bills managed to rally back. On Buffalo's first play of the third quarter, Antowain Smith broke off a 44-yard run, sparking a 62-yard drive that ended with his 4-yard touchdown run four plays later. Later on, the Bills drove 65 yards, featuring a 37-yard completion from Johnson to Eric Moulds, with a roughing the passer penalty on Kearse adding another 15. Smith finished the drive with another 4-yard touchdown run, giving the Bills a 13-12 lead after receiver Kevin Williams dropped a pass from Johnson on the two-point conversion attempt.

Late in the fourth quarter, the stage was set for an exciting finish. Tennessee received the ball with 6:15 remaining. Titans receiver Isaac Byrd's 16-yard punt return and five carries from Eddie George for 17 yards set up a wobbly 36-yard field goal by Del Greco. The Titans took a 15-13 lead with 1:48 to go. On the ensuing drive, with no timeouts remaining, Bills quarterback Johnson led the Bills on a five-play, 37-yard drive to the Titans' 24 yard line. On the last two plays from scrimmage, Johnson played with only one shoe on, as he had lost one and had no time to put it back on, with the clock running out. With only 16 seconds remaining in the game, Steve Christie, the Bills' kicker, made a 41-yard field goal to put Buffalo in the lead, 16-15.

Moments later, Christie kicked off, and Titans player Lorenzo Neal received. Neal handed the ball off to Titans tight end Frank Wycheck, who then lateraled the ball across the field to another Titans player, Kevin Dyson, who then ran down the sidelines for a 75-yard touchdown.

The play was named Home Run Throwback by the Titans and was developed by Special Teams Coordinator Alan Lowry. The Titans ran the play regularly in practices during the regular season, though the practices usually involved Derrick Mason, who was injured and did not play in the game against Buffalo. Dyson, as one of the team's lead wide receivers and Mason's substitute on special teams that day, rarely practiced with the special teams unit and was largely unfamiliar with the layout of the play. Nevertheless, his execution of Lowry's vision was flawless.

[edit] Official review

Per the instant replay rules, the play was reviewed by referee Phil Luckett since it was uncertain if the ball had been a forward pass, which is illegal on a kickoff return. However, the call on the field was upheld as a touchdown, and the Titans won the game 22-16. After the game, however, many Bills players and fans continued to insist that it was indeed an illegal forward pass.

[edit] Aftermath

The victory, in front of a franchise-record crowd at Adelphia Coliseum, allowed the Tennessee franchise to advance to the divisional round of the AFC playoffs for the first time since 1993. Subsequent victories over the Indianapolis Colts and Jacksonville Jaguars sent the Titans to Super Bowl XXXIV to face the St. Louis Rams, where they lost by a touchdown.

It could be said that the game served as revenge for the Titans/Oilers franchise for The Comeback, where the Bills came back from a 32-point deficit to defeat the Houston Oilers, 41-38, in overtime.

For the Bills, it led to the firing after 13 seasons of special teams coach Bruce DeHaven. One year later, Phillips was fired (partly due to his failure to lead the Bills past the first round of the playoffs during his tenure) and replaced by Titans defensive coordinator Gregg Williams.

It was added to the list of infamous moments in Buffalo sports history, joining Wide Right and No Goal.

[edit] Radio call

The radio call of this play by Mike Keith and Pat Ryan on the Tennessee Titans Radio Network:

This is the transcript of the call:

Keith: "Do the Titans have a miracle left in them in what has been a magical season to this point? If they do, they need it now. Christie kicks it high and short. Gonna be fielded by Lorenzo Neal at the 25; he dishes it back to Wycheck; he throws it across the field to Dyson..."

Ryan: "He's got somethin'..."

Keith: "30, 40..."

Ryan: "He's got somethin'..."

Keith: "50, 40.."

Ryan: "He's got it! He's got it!"

Keith (voice volume increasing): "30, 20.."

Ryan: "He's got it!"

Keith: "10, 5, endzone...touchdown, Titans! There are no flags on the field! It's a miracle! Tennessee has pulled a miracle! A miracle for the Titans!"

Ryan: "Frank Wycheck threw another pass."

Keith: "Three seconds remaining on the clock!"

But then a question of whether or not Wycheck's lateral to Dyson was actually a lateral arose. Luckett reviewed the play, and once Luckett had decided that the call would stand, Keith said this:

Keith: "Here comes Luckett, with the call of the new millennium."

When he announced his ruling, Keith and Ryan had another exchange:

Luckett: "After reviewing the play, the ruling on the field stands. It was a lateral..."

Keith: "We did it!"

Ryan: "Yes! Titans win!" (This drowned out Luckett saying, "Touchdown.")

Keith: "Three seconds to go, and Tennessee is on the verge of a miracle finish!"

Ryan: "Wow, what a game!"

[edit] See also

• NFL playoffs, 1999-2000
• The Comeback
• Wide Right
• No Goal